Corona

[NativeForeigner]

More sounds began to come from upstairs. While before it sounded as though a single entity had been adding it's own sounds to the houses, it now seemed as though one or two more and begun adding their own sound to the Manor's ambiance of the building.
Another crash, then the sound of running and a door opening, the door at the top of the stairs, in fact.  

[Dreamshell]

The commotion upstairs ignited something deep in Tom that he hadn’t felt in… how long? But then, his wife did always find new, hidden away parts of him to explore everyday. It wasn't a stretch to think she could succeed at this even in her absence.

“Rebecca!” he cried out suddenly up the stairway. He looked back to Ton’yell, realizing his outburst, and sought to save face.

“I, uh, I’ll get the girl for you…” he said. He continued to call out the name—both that of his wife and the little girl—hoping that at least one of them would answer to it.  

[Anima Shadow]

"I'm here."

The second crash had been too much for the girl. Shy or not, she couldn't handle being alone with so many noises beginning to echo throughout the house. At the sound of the opening door, Rebecca had raced through the lobby, sparing only a brief glance in the direction of the second floor. Now she stood at the doorway, a look of slight panic distorting her face as she glanced around at the people she had just left behind.

Strength in numbers.

Whether she saw anything at the top of the stairs or not would be recalled once she had calmed down.  

[SiberDrac]

"Hey! Hey, lady!" Jesse snatched for the cigarettes, but his height prevented success in that department. "Come on, Tony! Miss! Miss Jordan! Gonna make me go cold turkey in a haunted house? Great child care, lady. Great. I've already got the shakes, see?" He held out his hand and very obviously shook it up and down. When that clearly was not going to work for him, he crossed his arms and glared at her.

At mention of his mother, he calmed down, hooked his thumbs in his pockets, and snorted, "Guess we should g-" The new series of sounds cut him off and startled him into jumping. Almost reflexively, he blinked rapidly a few times, switching to Chris. His eyes narrowed and he put his hands in his pockets and spoke in a thinner, higher, but more serious tone. "It's a bunch of old stuff," she insisted with an exasperated sigh. "And maybe this man's wife and whoever got her. I think that two grown adults can take on whoever that is, and I'm going to disprove all this 'haunted house' nonsense."

Rebecca joined them while Chris was still talking and with one foot already on the stairs. "Rebecca, I guess?" she asked perfunctorily. "I'm Chris." She rolled her eyes. "Or Alex. Whatever. Don't ask. You'll get used to it."  

[Isa-sama]

Ton'yell looked at Chris with a slight frown. "Two adults taking on one person, sure. But we don't know how many people there are, if that person has a gun, or if there is another person being held hostage. There are too many factors. We should go and get the police." However, if someone attempted to get to Alex/Jesse/Chris, then she'd brave all hell to keep him safe.  

[SiberDrac]

"Hmph. It does sound like more than one person." Chris frowned up at the darkened top of the stairs, then cast her glance around at the three others before returning it to her goal. Stupid paranoia was keeping her from discovering truth. She should go, anyway. Dispel this myth of ghosts. But she really, really didn't want to run into any kidnappers.

She stared Miss Jordan in the face. "Fine. Let's go, then. This is your area, Alex," she said contemptuously. "Coward." It was difficult to tell her target, and then she was gone. Any trace of snobbery vanished as Alex finished blinking and softly made his way over to Ton'yell.

"I suppose I am a bit of a coward," he said quietly. He glanced at shyly at Rebecca and Tom. "I guess we should go..." He waited patiently for Ton'yell to lead them out the door.  

[Dreamshell]

“Rebecca, you should go with Ms. Jordan, too,” Tom told the girl. “It may not be safe here.”  

[Isa-sama]

Ton'yell gave Alex a small frown, "You are NOT a coward, Alex. And Chris shouldn't be saying so." Honestly, it was not about bravery, but about safety. "Will you join us, Rebecca?" she asked the girl.  

[NativeForeigner]

Uncertain footsteps were heard moving towards the stairs, closer to the group. The footsteps stopped only briefly. A silhouette could be seen standing at the top of the stairs, the arms resting limply at the figure's sides.
A low growl was coming from the figure.
It's head moved slowly as it scanned the area below. Then, without warning, it let out a primal scream and sprinted down the stairs, dashing for the bottom of the stairs.  

[Dreamshell]

Tom stood motionless, watching the figure as it drew ever closer. Despite his best efforts, his brain refused to process what was happening. It was like he was staring at some Magic Eye book and searching for the hidden 3D image. He’d never been able to make those damn things work, though.

On some level, he knew his instincts should have kicked in. He should have been running or moving to protect the woman and children like a good hunter-gatherer. But nothing happened. He just kept staring.  

[Isa-sama]

Ton'yell was slightly tense over the introduction of the new, yet strange, man. She'd pushed the children behind her when he'd made the strange growl. When it screamed and started running down at them, she pushed the kids straight to the side and fell in a fighting stance. He won't be able to stop his momentum from this running. Once he got close, she crouched so that he would spin over her back and slam onto the floor.

She turned around remaining in her fighting stance. While the man was still on the ground, she barked to Alex and Rebecca. "Get behind me. Now." She had no idea what was on this man's agenda, but he was clearly not in his right mind.  

[NativeForeigner]

The man, now revealed to be a slightly overweight, middle-aged balding adult wearing khaki slacks and a white dress shirt, rolled over Ton'yell's back in his eagerness to reach her.
He scrambled to grab her but failed and crashed to the floor. He scrambled to his feet and dove for Ton'yell.  

[Isa-sama]

The guy came at her again and she had only a few seconds to decide what to do. Seeing as he came at her from the front, she pulled off a defensive move. She held her fist out so that he dove straight into it (it was surprising how many people failed to dodge once in the momentum). He got knocked back a bit, so she turned around to urge the kids towards the exit. "Run! Now!"

The group started running towards the exit. She made sure to stay at the pace of the kids and kept looking back for the crazy man. I don't want him to give us a surprise attack.  

[NativeForeigner]

The man slammed into the punch and fell to the ground once again. Ton'yell had felt the man's jaw crack from the force of the blow. He had run at her hard.
He pushed himself up from the ground, clawing for Ton'yell's legs as she ran past. He got to his feet. The left side of his mouth was hanging open loosely in a snarl, blood was dripping off of his lips.
He took a steadier approach towards Ton'yell and the kids as he stalked closer.

As the three approached the door, it quickly slammed closed on them with no explanation.  

[SiberDrac]

As the figure made its entrance, Alex was already making himself rather small. When it decided to hurtle itself down the stairs, he let out a frightened yelp and didn't need her restraining arm to help him hide. The attacks didn't seem to stop. The man flew at her once, and didn't care that he had been thrown down. He came back. He just kept coming, and then Ton'yell was shoving them out the door, but once he had hid, Alex didn't want to move anymore. He was paralyzed, and the shouting didn't wake him from his stupor. He didn't leave with the rest, and he felt a strange voice building in him. It was unintelligible for now, but it seemed to be getting clearer... his gaze went slack as he stood like a statue in front of the door...